Ozarks Education Center Bull Shoals Field Station

The building is designed with a light touch both physically and sustainably on the natural environment, considering sustainable strategies in the areas of site, building, systems, and materials. The project’s massing was also sited to minimize excavation and overall site disturbance, ultimately reducing project costs. The design team carefully considered programming to ensure the correct amount of space was allotted for the program’s needs without oversizing the project. The education center is designed to be an affordable building with materials intended to weather over time. The project’s existing site began as a burnt down house and a field of waste. This previous destruction ultimately led to success in the project’s restoration capabilities. For example, the building was designed in position to save the trees in the project area where possible and utilized the trees that necessitated removal as car stops in the parking area. The design team and College of Natural and Applied Sciences also worked together to plant new trees to fill out the site to return it closer to its natural state. The remaining site was seeded with native grasses and shrubs. In addition, roof water runoff was directly channeled to bioswales with rip rap and native rain garden plantings which helps discourage water runoff and preserve the quality of the lake ecosystem located a few acres from the site. Native plantings were incorporated to help filter water through building deep root systems. Through these strategies, the design provided increased opportunity for the natural environment to create healthy ecosystems than there was prior to the project. As time goes on, MSU students will continue to add to the plantings, create attractions for local species, and harvest rainwater to irrigate when needed.